All Events
Race Matters Series
JUST ADDED! Busting the Myth: Are Asian Americans really up for it? Mitchell Chang
MCC LOUNGE
Recently, two stories have captured broad public attention. One surrounds parenting methods used to produce hyper achieving students (see Amy Chua's “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior”) and another reports on how elite colleges hold APAs to higher admissions standards than applicants from other race groups (see Jon Marcus’ “Competitive Disadvantage”). These two stories are alike in that they both reinforce the stereotype of Asian Americans as model minorities. How Asian Americans respond to recent popular stories may well set the tone for our collective sense of self-determination. If Asian Americans really want to bust the model minority stereotype, which has become folklore, it will require nothing short of a radical resistance against social norms.
Mitchell J. Chang is Professor of Higher Education and Organizational Change and Asian American Studies (by courtesy) at UCLA. He has written over 70 publications, including a book that was cited in the U.S. Supreme Court ruling of Grutter v. Bollinger. Professor Chang received a National Academy of Education/Spencer Fellowship in 2001 and was awarded the Outstanding Outcomes Assessment Research Award, 1999-2000 by the American College Personnel Association. He was also profiled in 2006 as one of the nation’s top ten scholars under forty by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education and in 2008, he received the ACPA Asian Pacific American Network Outstanding Contribution to APIDA Research Award.
Cup of Culture
Noho Hewa: The Wrongful Occupation of Hawaii
MCC THEATER
This documentary is a contemporary look at Hawaiian people, politics, and resistance in the face of their systematic erasure under U.S. laws, economy, militarism, and real estate speculation. It is a raw, unscripted story that makes critical links between seemingly unrelated industries, and is told from the perspective of Hawaiians. Keala Kelly, 82 min., English and Hawaiian with English subtitles, 2009, USA.
True Tales and Clever Lies Dan Kwong
MCC THEATER
Award-winning performance artist Dan Kwong presents excerpts from his most recent solo IT’S GREAT 2B AMERICAN. From elementary school stories to historical sagas, Kwong reveals the delicious irony that comes with a U.S. passport and an Asian face: “oppressed minority” here at home, yet privileged citizen of the great global power while abroad. Dan also performs other gems from the Kwong-repertoire that highlight his unique mix of autobiography, family history, historical events, and contemporary issues. A powerful, funny, poignant evening of performance!
Student Series - Meet the Filmmaker La Isla - Archives of a Tragedy
MCC THEATER
In this artfully rendered film, Guatemala’s violent history of repression at the hands of extremist political regimes is laid bare following the discovery of a vast archive of secret police documents. Found near the site of La Isla—a notorious extrajudicial prison—the cache details with chilling specificity the surveillance, torture, and killing of thousands of civilians targeted by the country’s succession of fanatical right-wing governments. Discussion with the director following the screening. Uli Stelzner,
83 min., Spanish with English subtitles, 2009, Germany and Guatemala. Co-sponsored by Unión Salvadoreña de Estudiantes Universitarios (USEU).
